The US Army Communications Electronics Command, Tobyhanna Army Depot is planning for a possible consolidation of electronic Test, Measurement, and Diagnostic Equipment (TMDE). The intent of this RFI is determine sources interested in providing Synthetic Instruments (SI) that have the capability to combine several TMDE into a single platform, to reduce the inventory of obsolete TMDE, and to reduce the total cost of ownership to the Government. The purpose of this Request for Information (RFI) is to solicit industry feedback regarding the commercial standard vendor capabilities and budgetary pricing of available SI. Information contained in this RFI is the result of preliminary research on existing depot SI resources on hand business intelligence capabilities and is therefore potentially subject to modification and is in no way binding on the Government. There is no guarantee that any submission in response to this RFI will result in a Government program. This Request For Information (RFI) is issued solely for information and planning purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation. Responses will be treated as information only and will not be used as a proposal. The information submitted in response to this RFI may be used to help the Government further define its requirements. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. The Government does not intend to make an award on the basis of this RFI. If the Government develops a program that addresses any submitted or similar topic, the resulting procurement will address technology and business specific requirements as defined by the Government to achieve the required objectives. Any projects developed from the RFI responses may be the subject of a subsequent acquisition, and any such subsequent acquisition will be publicized accordingly. Responders to this RFI will have no competitive advantage in receiving any awards related to the submitted topic area. The Government does not intend to pay for the information solicited. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges by the government will arise because of submission of responses to this RFI and the government's use of such information. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI. All information received in response to this RFI that is marked as proprietary will be handled accordingly. Responses to this RFI that indicate that the information therein is proprietary, or represents confidential business information, will be received and held in confidence. Proprietary information submitted, as part of responses to the RFI, should be clearly identified as COMMERCIAL IN-CONFIDENCE and it will be treated as such. TYAD reserves the right to follow up on a one-on-one basis with RFI respondents to gain additional information or clarity about information submitted by industry respondents', best practices, industry environment, and other subjects relevant to this RFI. This RFI is for planning purposes only and there is no intention to acquire any products or services, or award any contract, based on this RFI. THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IS REQUESTED by this RFI: 1. Indicate responder's interest in providing the SI based on each shop spreadsheet. Each spreadsheet lists the TMDE currently used in that shop. The responder's SI must meet or exceed all the specifications and features of the TMDE listed in the spreadsheet for that particular shop, or equivalent. The TMDE may consist of a single SI, or multiple SI depending on the application, shop and/or specifications. The Government's goal is to reduce costs while maintaining the current TMDE capabilities to support shop operations. 2. Indicate responder's interest in providing SI that either combine multiple TMDE from one particular manufacturer, or SI that combine TMDE from multiple manufacturers. For each shop, indicate whether the responder currently has products that satisfy the SI requirements for each shop spreadsheet, or whether the responder is are interested in developing SI that will satisfy the requirements for each shop. Responders may indicate their interest in one or more shop spreadsheets in any combination. Record the current or future SI model number(s) that responder identifies in the quote mark Suggested SI Replacement quote mark column of each spreadsheet. The rows in the spreadsheet may be rearranged to indicate how your solution combines multiple TMDE. Provide the specifications for the proposed SI in a separate document, and explain how it meets the needs of the Government shop. Record estimated budgetary pricing in the Budgetary Price column. RESPONDER'S BUDGETARY PRICING WILL BE USED FOR FEASIBILITY ANALYSIS ONLY, AND WILL NOT BE USED AS A BASIS FOR BID. 3. The responder should address application and use of all accessories in the Government inventory that are used with the current TMDE for each shop to the maximum extent possible, including, but not limited to, cables, sensors, probes, bridges, calibration kits, adapters, couplers, etc. Only the accessories used in each shop that require calibration are listed in the spreadsheets. If some or all accessories used with the current TMDE cannot be used with the proposed SI, indicate the details of this in your response, as well as the additional accessories required. 4. Responder should address to what degree their SI is flexible and expandable to allow for implementation of future instruments and capabilities to the maximum extent possible without major hardware reconfiguration; how the responder's hardware reconfiguration required is modular, and not require the SI to be returned to the manufacturer for modification; to what degree the SI is software-based with appropriate processing and data storage capabilities for future expansion; by what method the SI allows for the programming and implementation of automated testing and recording routines that operate the internal instrument functionality; to what degree the programming is based on non-proprietary languages such that the Government may incorporate additional software routines and applications without the assistance of the manufacturer and whether or not the SI software operating system is a standard, commercially available product. 5. It is not necessary that the responder's SI meet the same mechanical form factor as the current TMDE for each shop, however, the responder should address how the responder's capability for the SI to operate in both bench top and 19-inch rack mounted configurations, as appropriate. Combining multiple hand held instruments into a single SI should result in a hand held SI. Combining a hand held instrument with a non hand held instrument should result in a hand held SI. 6. Indicate interest in providing services for the SI including repair and calibration support. For each SI, your response should include the estimated or calculated Mean Time To Repair (MTTR), Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF), recommended calibration interval, and time required to perform calibration in hours. 7. The Government also requests that responders indicate their interest in supplying complete calibration procedures and associated equipment such that the Government can perform the calibrations. Also indicate responder's interest in providing repair documentation including troubleshooting procedures, maintenance procedures, and repair parts information such that the Government can perform complete logistics support for the proposed SI. Commercial manuals are sufficient to satisfy this requirement provided they contain all the information necessary for calibration, troubleshooting, maintenance, and repair of the SI. Budgetary pricing should be provided. 8. Responder's response should discuss the advantages of its SI with respect to the current TMDE. Advantages may include reduced calibration hours, flexibility, expandability, enhanced specifications, reduction in total cost of ownership, etc. 9. Indicate responder's interest in providing technical and business case analysis services to the Government, including current and future TMDE specifications, needs, and usage models, as well as total cost of ownership, and return on investment. Budgetary pricing should be provided. 10. Responder's should indicate best industry practices that to be applied to the SI throughout the response to paragraphs 1-9 above. Send questions or concerns regarding this RFI through e-mail to: Mark Fagotti, PMP Communications Systems Engineer Tobyhanna Army Depot Tobyhanna, Pa 18466 Office 570-615-6739 DSN 795-6739 Lab 570-615-6951 Fax 570-615-6330
[email protected] Complete written responses to this RFI are to be submitted to the above referenced e-mail address, no later than 12:00 PM EDT on 30 October 2013. Responses should include the name, telephone number, and e-mail address of a point of contact having authority and knowledge to discuss responses with TYAD. See Additional Documentation for Amendment 02 Extending Response date for responses to be submitted. See Additional Documentation for Amendment01 Questions Recieved and Government's Response